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NBC SPORTS GROUP TO AIR 103 NHL REGULAR-SEASON GAMES IN 2013-14
NBC Sports Network Drops Puck on NHL 2013-14 Season on Tuesday, October 1 at 8 p.m. ET with Washington Capitals at 2013 Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks
NHL Winter Classic Between Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings at Michigan Stadium, "The Big House," January 1 at 1 p.m. ET on NBC
NBC and NBC Sports Network Combine to Televise 2014 NHL Stadium Series and NHL Heritage Classic
Wednesday Night Rivalry Continues on NBC Sports Network with 24 Games
NBC Sports Live Extra to Stream All 103 Regular-Season Games
Bruins Have League-High 13 National TV Games Followed by Blackhawks, Blues, Penguins, Rangers & Wild with 12
Stamford, Conn. -- July 19, 2013 -- NBC Sports Group will deliver coverage of 103 NHL regular-season games during the 2013-14 season, featuring 13 games on NBC and 90 games on NBC Sports Network. All games will be streamed live via NBC Sports Live Extra. Schedule highlights include:
· The season begins with NHL Face-Off, the League's North American launch event. Prior to NBC Sports Network's first game of the season, in which the Washington Capitals visit the 2013 Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks, NBC Sports Network will provide coverage of the Blackhawks 2013 Stanley Cup championship banner raising ceremony at the United Center in Chicago, Ill.
· The 2014 NHL Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings on January 1 at 1 p.m. ET on NBC.
· The inaugural NHL Stadium Series, featuring four games played in iconic outdoor venues between January 25 and March 1, including: Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Calif., Yankee Stadium in New York, N.Y., and Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill. Plus the NHL Heritage Classic at BC Place in Vancouver, B.C. on March 2.
· The return of Wednesday Night Rivalry on NBC Sports Network. The 2013-14 NHL season on NBCSN will feature 24 Wednesday Night Rivalry telecasts -- up from 15 last year.
· A Stanley Cup Final rematch between the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins on Sunday, January 19 on NBC.
· Eastern Conference Final rematch between the Boston Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, October 30 on NBCSN.
· Western Conference Final rematch between the Los Angeles Kings and the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday, December 30 on NBCSN.
· The Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings, who went to seven games in the 2013 Western Conference Semifinals, will face off twice on NBC Sports Network. The Red Wings host the Blackhawks on Wednesday Night Rivalry, January 22. On Sunday, March 16, the Red Wings travel to Chicago to take on the Blackhawks.
· In a renewal of their fierce intra-state rivalry, the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins meet three times on NBC and NBC Sports Network this season. The Penguins host the Flyers on Wednesday Night Rivalry, November 13 on NBC Sports Network. On Sunday, March 16 the Flyers return to Pittsburgh to take on the Penguins on NBC. The two teams meet again on Saturday, April 12 on NBC.
NBC Sports Network will offer games on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights throughout the season. Beginning in January, a Sunday game will be added most weeks. NBCSN drops the puck on its coverage on Tuesday, October 1 at 7 p.m. ET with NHL Live, NBC Sports Network's live pre- and post-game show.
NHL Live will feature the banner raising ceremony for the 2013 Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks, live from the United Center in Chicago, Ill. At 8 p.m. ET, NBCSN will present exclusive coverage of the Blackhawks hosting the Washington Capitals. Emmy Award-winning play-by-play commentator Mike 'Doc' Emrick, analyst Eddie Olczyk and Emmy Award-winning 'Inside-the-Glass' analyst Pierre McGuire will call the game.
NHL on NBC coverage begins on Friday, November 29 at 1 p.m. ET, with the NHL Thanksgiving Showdown featuring the New York Rangers at Boston Bruins. Beginning on January 19, and continuing through the end of the regular season, NBC will air a national "Game of the Week" on most Sundays.
The Boston Bruins have the most games across NBC and NBC Sports Network this season, with 13. Boston is followed closely by the Chicago Blackhawks, Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and St. Louis Blues, who all make 12 appearances. Four additional teams have 11 games on NBC and NBC Sports Network -- Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers, and Washington Capitals.
NHL WINTER CLASSIC
The annual NHL Winter Classic will take place on January 1, 2014 at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich. -- The Big House -- and will feature the Toronto Maple Leafs vs. the Detroit Red Wings. The 2014 NHL Winter Classic will be broadcast on NBC at 1 p.m. ET. Emrick, Olczyk and McGuire will call the game.
The five previous NHL Winter Classics have produced five of the six most-watched NHL regular-season games in the past 38 years (average viewers).
MOST-WATCHED NHL REGULAR-SEASON GAMES SINCE 1975
4.5 million Jan. 1, 2011 NBC Capitals-Penguins
4.4 million Jan. 1, 2009 NBC Red Wings-Blackhawks
3.8 million Jan. 27, 1996 FOX Six-game regional coverage
3.8 million Jan. 1, 2008 NBC Penguins-Sabres
3.74 million Jan. 2, 2012 NBC Rangers-Flyers
3.68 million Jan. 1, 2010 NBC Flyers-Bruins
NHL STADIUM SERIES and NHL HERITAGE CLASSIC
NBC and NBC Sports Network will combine to present the 2014 NHL Stadium Series, which consists of a new set of four outdoor games. The NHL Stadium Series will feature the Anaheim Ducks-Los Angeles Kings, New Jersey Devils-New York Rangers, New York Islanders-New York Rangers, and Pittsburgh Penguins-Chicago Blackhawks. All games will be held at iconic outdoor stadiums in Los Angeles, New York and Chicago. In addition, NBCSN will also present coverage of the NHL Heritage Classic featuring the Ottawa Senators-Vancouver Canucks.
Coverage begins on Saturday, January 25 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network, when the 2012 Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings face off against the Anaheim Ducks at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Calif. It will be the first outdoor NHL game ever played in Los Angeles, and the second outdoor hockey game for the Kings franchise. In 1991, the Kings participated in an outdoor exhibition match with the New York Rangers in the parking lot at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nev.
The following day, Sunday, January 26 at 1 p.m. ET on NBC, the New York Rangers will take the ice against the New Jersey Devils at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. The contest will be the second outdoor hockey game for the Rangers in three years, as the team participated in the 2012 NHL Winter Classic against the Philadelphia Flyers at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pa.
Later that week, on Wednesday, January 29 at 7 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network, the New York Islanders will host the Rangers for a second outdoor game at Yankee Stadium. The game will be the first outdoor NHL game for the Islanders and the third for the Rangers since 2012. (2012 NHL Winter Classic and 2014 NHL Stadium Series Game 3)
On Saturday, March 1 at 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network will telecast the fourth game of the series featuring the Pittsburgh Penguins-Chicago Blackhawks at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill. The Penguins-Blackhawks matchup will be the second time Chicago has hosted a regular-season outdoor NHL game (2009 NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field). The Penguins will be participating in their third regular-season outdoor NHL game since 2008. (2008 NHL Winter Classic and 2011 NHL Winter Classic).
The NHL Heritage Classic will take place on Sunday, March 2 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network. The Vancouver Canucks will play the Ottawa Senators at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia.
DATE TEAMS STADIUM NETWORK TIME
January 25, 2014 Ducks-Kings Dodger Stadium NBCSN 10 p.m.
January 26, 2014 Rangers-Devils Yankee Stadium NBC 1 p.m.
January 29, 2014 Rangers-Islanders Yankee Stadium NBCSN 7 p.m.
March 1, 2014 Blackhawks-Penguins Soldier Field NBCSN 8 p.m.
March 2, 2014 Senators-Canucks# BC Place NBCSN 7:30 p.m.
*All times listed are ET.
#NHL Heritage Classic
WEDNESDAY NIGHT RIVALRY
NBC Sports Network's exclusive Wednesday Night Rivalry coverage will return for a second season and feature some of the biggest rivalries in the NHL, including Boston-Montreal, Philadelphia-Pittsburgh and Chicago-Detroit. The network will air exclusive coverage on Wednesday nights for 24 weeks, with games starting at 8 p.m. ET. WNR begins Wednesday, October 2 with the Buffalo Sabres facing off against the Detroit Red Wings.
During its inaugural season, Wednesday Night Rivalry was called "the hottest new brand in sports" by Forbes. It claimed six of the top eight most-watched NHL regular-season telecasts ever on NBC Sports Network and averaged 646,000 viewers. With the success of Wednesday Night Rivalry, the 2013 season was the most-watched NHL regular season on cable in 19 years.
NBC Sports Network 2013-14 NHL Wednesday Night Rivalry schedule (subject to change):
Date Away Home
October 2 Buffalo Detroit
October 9 Chicago St. Louis
October 16 New York Rangers Washington
October 23 Boston Buffalo
October 30 Boston Pittsburgh
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November 6 Pittsburgh New York Rangers
November 13 Philadelphia Pittsburgh
November 20 Pittsburgh Washington
November 27 Boston Detroit
December 4 Philadelphia Detroit
December 11 Philadelphia Chicago
December 18 Pittsburgh New York Rangers
January 8 New York Rangers Chicago
January 15 Washington Pittsburgh
January 22 Chicago Detroit
January 29 New York Rangers New York Islanders
February 5 Pittsburgh Buffalo
February 26 Boston Buffalo
March 5 Washington Philadelphia
March 12 Boston Montreal
March 19 St. Louis Chicago
March 26 Philadelphia New York Rangers
April 2 Boston Detroit
April 9 Detroit Pittsburgh
NBC SPORTS GROUP'S STATE-OF-THE ART STUDIOS
NHL studio programming throughout much of the 2013-14 season will originate from NBC Sports Group's state-of-the-art International Broadcast Center, located in Stamford, Conn.
NHL Live, NBC Sports Network's live pre- and post-game show with highlights and analysis of NHL matchups, will air before and after most games. This year, the program will expand to one hour prior to live-event coverage -- an increase from last year's half-hour show. The 30-minute post-game show will air immediately following the game.
On most days, the NHL Live team will consist of Liam McHugh (host), Mike Milbury (analyst), and Keith Jones (analyst).
2014 WINTER OLYMPICS
The NHL will pause from Feb. 9-25, 2014, while NHL players comprise the majority of the rosters of the national teams competing in Sochi, Russia, for Olympic gold. The NHL season resumes Wednesday, February 26.
FLEX SCHEDULING ON NBC
For the seventh consecutive season, the NHL and NBC Sports Group will utilize flex scheduling, which provides the ability to select from up to four games on Sunday afternoons. At least 13 days prior to the scheduled games, the NHL and NBC Sports will announce which game will air.
NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA COVERAGE
NBC Sports Live Extra, NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets, will stream all 2013-14 NHL regular season games televised on NBC and NBC Sports Network. All NBC Sports Network games will be live streamed via "TV Everywhere," the media industry's effort to make quality content available to authenticated customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms.
For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra. The NBC Sports Live Extra app for mobile devices and tablets is available at the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, and on select Android handset and tablet devices within Google Play.
Games airing on:
· NBC will live stream to PCs, mobile devices and tablets through NBC Sports Live Extra;
· NBC Sports Network will live stream to PCs, mobile devices and tablets through NBC Sports Live Extra, and to the digital platforms of participating cable, satellite, and telco services, via "TV Everywhere," which is available on an authenticated basis to subscribers of participating MVPDs.
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